In an old Eastern football rivalry matchup, the Penn State Nittany Lions and Syracuse Orange do battle Saturday afternoon on a neutral field at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey (3:30 pm ET).

In the early betting the Lions, who went 8-4 last year but are still playing under a postseason ban, were favored by eight points over the 'Cuse, who went 8-5 last year but will be playing their first game under new head coach Scott Shafer.

Penn State has been dominant for bettors lately, going 9-1-1 ATS in their past 11 games while sexual abuse scandals and trials swirled around the school.

View Penn State vs Syracuse Odds and Stats.

Penn State vs Syracuse Betting Line: On the Sportsbook line for this matchup, the Orange sat as 5-point underdogs, according to Sportsbook but has been bet up to -8.5 as of Thursday. The total, meanwhile, was 51.5 over at Sportsbook.






Penn State Nittany Lions Trends:
When playing in August are 5-1
When playing on turf are 6-4
After outgaining opponent are 7-3
When favored on the road are 9-1

Syracuse Orange Trends:
When playing in August are 1-5
When playing on turf are 5-5
After outgaining opponent are 8-2
When an underdog at home are 4-6

A few Nittany Lions at Orange trends to consider:
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Penn State's last 8 games
Penn State is 9-1-1 ATS in its last 11 games
Penn State is 8-2 SU in its last 10 games
Syracuse is 6-1 SU in its last 7 games
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Syracuse's last 7 games


Next up:
Penn State home to Eastern Michigan, Saturday, September 7
Syracuse at Northwestern, Saturday, September 7